Your cat is a bundle of joy. Right upto the point where you realise that she has relieved herself over your favourite duvet, the third time this week. It is near-impossible to rid the stench and stain associated with such deeds, and if this happens too frequently, it becomes a matter of bad hygiene for everyone in the household. I bet this becomes frustrating after the first few times, and you begin to wonder, why did my cat pee on my bed?

Instead of flying into a tirade against your pet, remember that it is against the nature of a cat to pee anywhere; peeing on your bed is a sign of deeper, solvable issues involved which need to be addressed immediately.

Why did my cat choose my bed to pee

Since you have already trained your cat in matters of hygiene, the reason why she would suddenly take to your beloved bed, of all places, can be two-fold. Either her existing litter-box is not meeting her requirements, or there is something pathologically or emotionally wrong with your cat. It can one or both the reasons. The faster you find the solution, the happier everyone is…

Is your cat stressed?

More often than not, peeing on my bed is a sign that my cat is feeling insecure. It is a trigger for me to start judging what has changed in the recent past.

Your cat is anxious

This is the most common cause for my cat to act up. There are several flags that can set off my cat, and I know that is true for all pets:

a)Every time I get a new pet, my cat feels threatened, both emotionally and physically. Any kind of pet higher in the pecking order of bullying (dogs, for instance), especially, if not initiated from a young age, can be stress-inducers for your cat. Animals square off over territory, resources, status and affection. Threat towards these factors, whether perceived or actual, can be deeply disturbing to your cat.

b)Having guests over, especially little children that eat into everyone’s attention and get pesky with the cat, turns off her mood. She would rather be left alone and take refuge in the relatively quieter bedroom for all her needs. ‘Cat-persons’ will testify to how protective these balls of fur can be towards their humans, and the disinclination to share affection is key to their changed behaviours around new people.

c)When my partner goes off on long trips, my cat quite literally mopes and starts peeing on my bed. Separation or any disturbance with the schedule associated with the pet-parents is known to trigger anxiety in the pet’s mind and causes them to behave out of nature.

Your cat needs a trip to the veterinarian

If you have not been able to recognise any triggers for behavioural changes, it is time to take your kitty to the doc. Cats can suffer from a host of medical problems like urinary tract infections, diabetes or arthritis. Any of these can make it painful for your cat to use the litter-box; your bed thus becomes a more comfortable alternative.

A urinalysis and a host of other diagnostic tests should be done to rule out any possibility of medical problems. The sooner this is attended to, the less suffering your cat has to go through.

Are the litter-boxes upto your cats’ tastes?

Are they big enough?

Litter-boxes, as a rule of thumb, should be approximately one-and-half times the length of the cat (excluding the tail). Small, campy litter-boxes are a no-no, as cats feel trapped and vulnerable while attending to nature’s call. In a multi-cat household, litter-boxes should outnumber your pets. Also, covered litter-boxes tend to make my cats feel blind-sided, so the bigger and open they are, the safer my pets feel.

By personal experience, theIRIS Open Top Cat Litter box makes my cats feel pretty pampered. The sides and back of this box are high enough to give the much-needed privacy to my cats and also prevents them from spraying their litter over to the floor.

Are they being cleaned regularly?

Litter-boxes should be ideally cleaned twice-a-day. Under normal circumstances, cats are tidier creatures than us, and we hate clogged and dirty toilets; imagine what our cats must feel like, having to return to an un-cleaned box. Regular scooping and scrubbing (the latter on a fortnightly basis) are key to maintaining hygiene for your pet.

It is also necessary to try out a few choices before settling on a particular type of litter box for your cat. It takes time to arrive at the right fit, but unless that happens, chances are, your cat will keep hunting for clean, comfortable and safe places to pee on, like your bed.

Are the litter-boxes in the right location and have the right substrate?

A lot of cat-owners try to hide litter-boxes behind inconvenient nooks and small, unobserved spaces, so as to avoid embarrassment to guests. If they are out-of-sight for you, chances are, your feline pets will choose a more accessible spot.

Your cat’s litter-box cannot be located smack in the middle of all the commotion; it cannot be too far away from where she spends most of her time and it certainly must offer some degree of privacy. The kind of substrate used in the litter-box is also crucial. Cats like to bury their waste, and prefer substrates with a grainy or sandy texture. Also, while for pet-owners, a scented substrate seems ideal to mask the malodour, most cats may disagree.

I have been a huge fan ofDr. Elsey’s cat litter, because it is a naturally clumping litter, with no deodorant features, and is really easy to clean.Better Way’s cat litter comes a close second, though my cats still prefer the former (I had to hurriedly revert to Dr. Elsey’s when I sensed the suspicion in my cat’s eyes!)

What is so inviting about your bed?

Your cat will not think along the line of aesthetics. She just likes the feel of your bed. It is clean, soft and absorbent and is preferable to the touch of the substrate in her litter-box. So peeing there comes as a natural step.

Your cat misses you

Other more serious factors can also be at play. Prolonged absence of the pet partner breeds insecurity in cats. They react by trying to reassure themselves of the parents’ presence, by mingling their own scents with that of the parents. Their actions are not vengeful, but one of self-soothing. They are only trying to be cute, but needless to say, we fail to see it that way.

A bed offers a bird’s-eye-view-of the threat below

A bed, or any elevated place, also acts as a respite from any kind of threat. A cat, like any creature, needs to pee in peace. If her litter-box is inconveniently located where she is exposed to attacks, she would much prefer to relieve herself atop your bed, which offers her a good view of the ground below and eliminate unwanted attention.

Sometimes, renovations, shifting houses and simple rearrangement of furniture can also trigger a sense of threat in your cat. Scared and in search for something familiar, she is likely to target your bed to pee in.

To summarise, take a look at thisvideo to detect your cat’s lack of interest in her litter-box, and what to do about it.

How to stop a cat from peeing on your bed

Keeping doors locked is the easiest way to remind your cat that the bedroom is out of bounds. Another alternative is to substitute the targeted fabric with something that your pet does not favour, like a slippery vinyl sheet.

Sometimes, when I realise that my cat is going through some form of anxiety, I deliberately set up play sessions on my bed, not just to ease her mind but also to endear the place to her as a happy spot.

As I said, cats are tidy creatures, they never litter where they sleep or play. Do not chastise your cat when you have nailed the issue as that will only antagonise and stress out your pet.

a)Soak it out of the fabric immediately using clean washcloths or paper towels.

b)If several hours have passed, spray 50 ml of a 1:1 water and vinegar mixture and soak it up after a minute.

c)The excess liquid can be soaked up using baking powder.

d)Next, apply one teaspoon each of hydrogen peroxide and detergent and let it sit for 15 minutes, before blotting it out and finally airing out the mattress.

Alternatively, there are several pet stain removers available, though you must take care of their composition. It is advisable to avoid any product containing ammonia as urine contains ammonia and the application of the product may again attract the cat to eliminate in the same spot.

If all else fails, you can always resort to professional cleaning services, specifically targeted at removing pet stains.

Conclusion

Any kind of remedial action – be it changing the litter-box, scheduling more time with your kitty or mitigating threat levels – will not yield immediate results. But don’t lose hope or patience.

I know you all love your cats just as much as I do mine. So if they do something seemingly naughty – like peeing on your bed – take a deep breath and remember what we talked about here. Let me know if my solutions worked for you. Even better, put in your views on the hows, the whys and to-dos. Be a proud cat-mommy (or daddy, as may be)!